The door-to-needle time for thrombolysis in STEMI is how many minutes?

The door-to-needle time for thrombolysis in STEMI is how many minutes?

• A. 60 minutes
• B. 15 minutes
• C. 45 minutes
• D. 30 minutes

Answer: (D)

The important idea is time to reperfusion. In STEMI, delivering thrombolysis as quickly as possible saves myocardium and reduces mortality, so guidelines target a door-to-needle time of 30 minutes or less from arrival to drug administration. That makes thirty minutes the best answer because it reflects the standard you’re expected to meet in real practice. Fifty-nine or sixty minutes would miss the recommended window and risk worse outcomes. Forty-five minutes is still longer than the target, slowing reperfusion. Fifteen minutes is an ideal pace but generally not achievable given the steps needed to confirm STEMI and prepare the thrombolytic, so it’s not used as the standard target.

The important idea is time to reperfusion. In STEMI, delivering thrombolysis as quickly as possible saves myocardium and reduces mortality, so guidelines target a door-to-needle time of 30 minutes or less from arrival to drug administration. That makes thirty minutes the best answer because it reflects the standard you’re expected to meet in real practice.

Fifty-nine or sixty minutes would miss the recommended window and risk worse outcomes. Forty-five minutes is still longer than the target, slowing reperfusion. Fifteen minutes is an ideal pace but generally not achievable given the steps needed to confirm STEMI and prepare the thrombolytic, so it’s not used as the standard target.